With Polymarket live in the US once again, many are wondering is Polymarket legal in all states? Well, we have compiled this guide to unpack the legality of the prediction market site in the US.
Currently, Polymarket is available in all 50 states. Thanks to approval from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), Polymarket is registered to operate as a Designated Contract Market (DCM). If you are 18 years and older and reside in the US, you can sign up using the banners on this page and start trading future event contracts on real-world events.
Is Polymarket legal in the US?
For a while, there was debate around Polymarket because the platform initially lacked the proper documentation to operate as a derivatives exchange. Today, many are asking why Polymarket is legal in the US.
In a nutshell, towards the end of 2025, Polymarket was in negotiations to acquire QCEX, a licensed derivatives exchange. As we shared in our
Polymarket review, that acquisition was completed recently. In 2026, Polymarket received approval from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and now serves as a Designated Contract Market.
Although the platform is still facing some issues with specific US states regarding the availability of trading on the platform, on a federal level, the prediction market site is federally legal to operate in the US.
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T&Cs and 18+ apply
Must be 18 years or older and have a legal, U.S. residential address within the applicable state, D.C., or U.S. territories. Not available in AZ, IL, MA, MD, MI, MT, NJ, NV and OH.
A guide on joining Polymarket
You can only engage in
Polymarket sports event trading
and buying and selling of other future event contracts once you have created an account on the platform. When the prediction market site first announced its return to the US market, prospective users had to submit their details to a waiting list. Once the prediction market went live, those on the waiting list were invited to sign up and start trading.
If you reside in the US and are 18 years or older, you can sign up using the banners on this page. The registration process is straightforward and only takes a few minutes to complete. Below is a step-by-step guide on how to create a new trading account:
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Click any banners on this page to visit the official Polymarket website.
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Select the Sign Up button at the top of the homepage.
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Choose whether to sign up with your Google or email account.
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If selected email, enter your email address and click the Continue button.
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Enter the verification code sent to your email address.
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Thereafter, your account will be created, and although there is no
Polymarket sign up bonus, you can start trading once you fund your trading account.
How to verify your trading account
As a Designated Contract Market, Polymarket is required by the CFTC to verify all users. After creating your trading account, you’ll need to submit electronic KYC documents, including proof of ID and address, to the support team. Verification can take up to 24 hours. If you don’t submit your documents or if they are rejected, your account will not be KYC approved and you will not be able to withdraw any future contract winnings.
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An overview of Polymarket prediction market
If you are interested in how the trading experience works, we have shared a brief overview below. We will unpack the different types of future event contracts, break down how to read
Polymarket odds
as probabilities, and share whether there are any trading fees.
Future event contracts
Polymarket works like most prediction markets, and you can trade the outcome of future events, primarily in the form of binary outcomes (yes or no). All contracts range from $0 to $1, with winning contracts settled at $1 and losing contracts settling at $0.
Since prediction markets are not a sportsbook, the site does not set its own contracts. The value of each contract is based on the trades made by other users on the likelihood of an event occurring. The higher the price, the more likely the traders believe that an event will occur.
For example, if the Buffalo Bills are trading at $0.75 to beat the New England Patriots, it means traders think there is a 75% chance the Bills win. If you purchase 100 Yes contracts, you will receive 133.33 contracts ($100/0.75). If the Bills win the game, you will receive $133.33 ($33.33 in profit). However, if the Bills lose the game, your contract will be settled at $0, and you will lose the initial $100 investment.
Sports event trading is not the only type of future events available. There are several types of future event contracts, ranging from sports outcomes to election predictions and economic projections. The table below details some of the available future event contracts available on Polymarket:
| Future event | Types of contracts | Contract example |
| Sports outcomes | Soccer, Basketball, Tennis, Football, UFC, Golf | Will the Houston Rockets beat the Charlotte Hornets? |
| Election predictions | Domestic and International elections | Who will win the Presidential Election in 2028? |
| Economic projections | Federal, GDP and company indicators | How many Fed rate cuts in 2026? |
| Crypto forecasts | Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana and exclusive tokens | What price will Bitcoin hit in March 2026? |
| Culture results | Oscar, Grammy, music charts, celebrity news | Top Spotify artist at the end of the year? |
Trading fees
While there used to be no
Polymarket fees
for trading future event contracts, the structure has recently changed. At the time of writing, Polymarket now implements a taker-only fee for specific future event contracts. The fees for these contracts are variable, but you will find taker-only fees for the following contracts:
- 5-minute Crypto markets
- 15-minute Crypto markets
- Sports contracts, like the NCAAB and Serie A
Pros and cons: Polymarket legal states
Polymarket’s open for trading in the US, but it’s not all smooth sailing everywhere. Here’s the quick look:
Pros and Cons
- CFTC-regulated DCM
- Federally legal
- Available in all 50 states
- Several state-level conflicts
Tips when buying and selling contracts
While buying and selling contracts on Polymarket is straightforward, it is important that you maximize your trading experience. We have compiled a few tips that you can follow when using the prediction market platform:
As soon as you sign up, submit your KYC documents so there are no delays when you’re ready to withdraw your winnings. We said the same thing in
our Fanduel Predict review, as it makes the whole process smoother from the start.
Do in-depth research on all future events before purchasing a contract. Your research should include the latest news, and also player injury records if trading sports contracts.
📈 Market Volume Importance
Market volume plays a crucial role when selling your contracts. Ensure that there is sufficient market volume and liquidity for an event; otherwise, you will struggle to sell your position.
💰 Understand Taker-Only Fee
Make sure you understand how the taker-only fee works for the select future contracts that have a trading fee. On the Polymarket website, a formula is shared which is used to calculate the fee. We encourage you to learn how to read this formula so you can correctly account for any fees before executing a trade on the order book.
Conclusion – Polymarket is legal in all 50 US states
That wraps up our Polymarket legal guide, and the key takeaway is that the prediction market site is legal in all 50 US states. Now that Polymarket is a CFTC-regulated Designated Contract Market, US traders are allowed to buy and sell future event contracts from any state. However, we encourage you to stay updated on the latest legal news by researching the prediction market app or viewing our pages, as we will always bring you the latest developments on the current state-level conflicts between the prediction market and US states.
If you are 18+ and reside in the US, you can sign up on Polymarket using the links or banners on this page. Before we go, one final piece of advice: do not forget to submit your KYC documents for user account verification; otherwise, your withdrawals will not be processed.
Sports Signup Promo
Politics Signup Promo
Culture Signup Promo
CFD Crypto Signup Promo
Economics Signup Promo
Deposit $20 get $50
T&Cs and 18+ apply
Must be 18 years or older and have a legal, U.S. residential address within the applicable state, D.C., or U.S. territories. Not available in AZ, IL, MA, MD, MI, MT, NJ, NV and OH.
Polymarket’s legality FAQs
❓ How is Polymarket legal in the US?
Polymarket completed the acquisition of QCEX, a licensed derivatives exchange. With the acquisition, Polymarket received approval from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and now serves as a Designated Contract Market.
🤔 Is Polymarket legal in Florida?
Yes, Polymarket is legal in Florida, Texas and every other US state. Since Polymarket is CFTC-regulated, the prediction market site is federally legal to operate in the US.
📃 Is KYC approval required for traders?
Per the terms and conditions, all US traders must submit their KYC documents for trader account verification. If you fail to submit these documents, your pending withdrawals will not be processed.
🏈 What types of future event contracts can you trade?
You can buy and sell contracts on several future events, including sports predictions, election results, economic projections, pop culture outcomes and climate forecasts.
